A Little Advice for 2 of my favorite Athletes

Dear Sam & Apollo,

I would hate to have to stop liking either of you, so if you could please do me a favor.... If Jessica Simpson should try to call you please do not answer, and then have her number blocked. I was just starting to like Tony Romo when she appeared and poof he lost all his skills, and most of his cuteness. I don't think either of you would want that to happen, so take my advice on this you won't regret it.

Love,

Jacqueline

Mashed potatos and gravy

Who needs a lap band when there's braces? This is going to take some serious getting used to. This morning I drank a Dr.Pepper, and after last night I didn't even want to think about breakfast. I tried to bite into my pizza sub for lunch and it lit up my world, and not in a good way. I had to find a knife and cut it up to baby bites. I could only eat about 4 inches of it. So for dinner I decided to go with a less difficult meal so I went to KFC and got some mashed potatos and gravy. On the menu for tomorrow.... let's see maybe some oatmeal, soup, and a spoon of peanut butter.
I guess it serves me right for giving my brother-in-law Josh a hard time when he had his braces put on this fall. If I'm correct I might have told him something like, "Good grief just be a man and eat something." I would like to go on record and say.... I take that back.

I think I may have had a cheese grater put in my mouth today

My new braces look really good. If I'd had the clear ones in middle school and high school I might not have been in such a desperate hurry to get them off. Seriously you really can't see them until I'm less than ten feet away. I also really like my new orthodontist Dr. James Shambarger, he is a perfectionist and he really takes his time to visit and get to know you. I recommend him to everyone! He just started practice in Texarkana in November, and is in Dr. McWilliam's old office on Texas Blvd., and if you ever need a root canal his wife Dr. Sandra Shambarger is the best, or at least she did a great job on Jon.
So, I'm glad I gave in and decided to do this again. As I was driving home I cranked up the radio to "I've got a feelin' that tonight's gonna be a good night" by the Black-eyed Peas, and for a few minutes I felt like I was 17 again! The only bad thing is I forgot the way it makes the inside of your lips feel. Thank goodness for wax! Oh well I can live with it for three to four months.
I do think braces may have been created by parents as the perfect way to inflict pain and suffering on smart mouth teenagers, and if that is the reason then I applaud whoever came up with the idea because most of us deserved it.

I just might be over my latest kick

For the past several weeks I have been on a Vanilla Coke kick from Dairy Queen or Sonic. Almost everyday or every other day I've been chuggin a 44oz. However at this very moment I'm over it. Dairy Queen put too much vanilla in mine this evening, and now I'm just tryin not to be sick from it.

Did anyone besides me think Evan Lysachek's outfit was just a bit creepy. I just can't stand snakes! Ugh! Johnny Weir also had a really sick black and pink get up on the night before, but I guess he accomplished his goal because look we're all talking about it.

I saw a Tartan runway show on TV earlier today, and now I'm making it my personal goal in life to get Jon in a kilt. Too bad his last name isn't Scottish, but he can borrow my maiden name, and wear the Wilson plaid. I have a thing for a man in a kilt. Some women go gaga over marines or baseball players. I say bring on the kilt! Nothing says I'm a man, and I don't have anything to prove to anyone quite like a kilt.

Braces & Popcorn

Ok, so I didn't listen to my mother when I was 17 when she told me I had better wear my retainers or I would really be sorry one day. Well she was right. I'm sorry. Next Monday I am going to get braces again for the 3rd time in my life. The good news is it is only going to be for 3 to 4 months, and they are going to be clear. The other good news is I came home to find a box from QVC with Mrs. Prindable's Butter Toffee popcorn. Don't be at all surprised if I don't get the stuff eaten before next Monday. It is soooo good! If you've ever thought about ordering it, go ahead you'll be happy you did.

Lingerie returns!?!?

As you know our bathroom reader calendar is a daily source of insight. This being Valentine's weekend part of the update read like this "50% of all Lingerie purchases are returned (this includes bras, panties, and any sort of frilly feminine sleepwear)." Maybe it's just me, but I am really bothered by this. I honestly can't remember taking back anything from the intimates department. Am I the only person in the world that buys stuff and keeps it? Suddenly I thought of a girl I saw walking around the college this week with the tag still on her purse and jacket. I knew she was going to wear it a few days and take it back for something else. Although I'm not crazy about that, I really hope people aren't doing the same thing with their underwear. I personally hate tags. I cut them out of everything. I can't imagine walking around with a tag on purpose. Of course this could be a case where a man has gone and gotten something for his wife, and she was like "NO WAY this is going back!" or maybe she was like "Honey look at me... does this look like it would fit me? Maybe if I was 12!" I'm really hoping the latter is the case.

Snow

Wow it is still snowing outside. It's been a while since it last snowed here, and I feel like I had forgotten how beautiful it is.
So I have this little delimma called the two extra bedroom closets. Why is it almost impossible to keep a closet that you aren't using clean? When I open the doors and can't walk in I start getting this feeling that I need to do something about it. The problem is I don't want to. I have several rubbermaid containers of "things" you know "things your mom continuously gives you that she says were yours." After five years of being married she's still finding "stuff." I just want to know, "How did I accumulate all that, and why couldn't she have just found it and left it alone, or better yet give it to the Goodwill and just not tell me?" At least I know I'm not the only person whose parents do this. A few weeks ago I went with Mom up to Idabel, Ok to my little cousin Molly's birthday and to see Catherine & T.J.'s new house. They have been married over 10 years, and while we were visiting T.J.'s parents pulled up with several boxes of his stuff that they were bringing and putting on their porch. The only bad news that goes along with this is I'm afraid I may not be anywhere near finished getting boxes full of homecoming mums, nail polish, dry glitter glue, movie stubs, stickers, trophies, and posters. Somebody help me!

Off to School

It's kind of wierd teaching a night class. Just as everyone is coming home from work, I'm heading out the door. I always hated night class when I was in college. You would think I would still be the same way, but for some reason it doesn't bother me. I'm glad the sun came out today so Cookie and Winston could unleash their craziness in the backyard. I think the rest of my neighbors must have had the same idea because there is a non stop barking sound coming from every backyard.

I will forever praise Him even when my heart is aching

The past few days have been very difficult for me, and I haven't really felt like doing anything, much less getting on the computer. Tonight the Lord has blessed me with a great peace, and I feel that I need to share this.

When I was 11 years old I made one of the best friends I will ever have. We had been to visit my cousins in Idabel, OK, and their cat had just had a litter of the cutest kittens you've ever seen. I remember peaking down into the wooden box in the barn and seeing all of these cute little fur balls huddled together, but there was this one little black and white one that was jumping around and trying to get out of the box. My other cousin Matthew called her Flyer, and he wanted her but his mother said they couldn't have a cat. I remember being happy about this because that little feisty thing had secretly won my heart, and I wanted her so bad. My sister was taken with a tiny shy little siamese that happened to be the runt, and Jordan wanted to call her Sophie. My mom said that we could have the siamese one, but we could only get one. Thankfully they weren't ready to be weaned yet, so I had time to secretly cook up a scheme with my aunt Frankie to end up with both of them. I would call her everyday, and ask her "Are the kitties ready, and remind her which ones we wanted and to make sure she kept it a secret." Finally the day came when Frankie came to deliver the kitties. I was so worried that she would only bring Sophie. When she opened the car door, and they were both there together my heart lept with joy. My mom was a little bit flabbergasted, but there was nothing she could do, and when she saw how happy we were to each have our own kitten she just laughed and said "What's one more!" Through the years we have shared so much love, and laughs. Little Flyer got herself into more trouble for sneaking open cabinet doors, and finding any sort of treat left on the kitchen cabinet to nibble on. Her all time favorite was Doritos original nacho flavor. I watched her one night open up the pantry cabinet, and crawl in to get some. Who needs mice when they've got Fly? She also loved it when we would fill the bathroom sink with water so she could splash water on the mirrors. She was so loving, and was never happier than when she was on my lap or curled up close beside me in bed. Our animals become our family. They love us so unconditionally, and without reserve. We never want to have to say goodbye, but at least I know I will see her again one day. The Lord knows our hearts, and He loves us. Yesterday I prayed that He would take her from my arms into His, and I know that she is no longer sick, and she is happy. I am still very very sad. The tears come from no where. I've heard it said that the Lord is closest to those who are grieving, and I have to say He is always close. Sometimes it is when we are suffering that we really try harder to hear Him than we usually do. I know that we all have trials and tribulations to face in our life, just call on Jesus because Faith will see you through anything this world can throw at us.

Tonight as I was driving home I heard this song by the Christian group Kutless, and I just want to share the words of the first verse.

Everybody falls sometimes

Gotta find the strength to rise

From the ashes and make a new beginning

Anyone can feel the ache

You think its more than you can take

But you are stronger, stronger than you know

Don't you give up now

The sun will soon be shining

You gotta face the clouds

To find the silver lining

I've seen dreams that move the mountains

Hope that doesn't ever end

Even when the sky is falling

And I've seen miracles just happen

Silent prayers get answered

Broken hearts become brand new

That's what faith can do

HGTV

I went with Jon to Home Depot last night because he needed a special kind of light bulb for the store that only they have... that's where our troubles began. Then we came home and Jon turned on HGTV, and things got to festering. He also borrowed a magazine from my Mom called Get Organized 155 things you can do or build yourself. I don't know why we do this to ourselves. We both got to thinking about 9000 things we could do to tear up our house. I even woke up at 6:30 this morning really debating should I paint the fireplace white or should I leave it alone, and what am I going to plant in that really shady spot on the southeast side of our house?? Yesterday morning we were perfectly content with our house the way it is, now we're ready to gut it. I'm telling you I think we just might be nuts. Maybe it's because spring is on its way. In one final cling to sanity I've decided we aren't doing anything until we give it some serious thought, now I'm just going to have to keep Jon out of Lowes and Home Depot because he is just as bad as I am about this sort of thing.

I just gotta have an iphone

I thought I'd be alright, really I did. I didn't think I would have the feeling a kid gets when they decide what they really want for Christmas, Birthday, Valentine's day. Mom and Dad got theirs at the first of the summer, and I was okay with that. They deserve a few top knotch gadgets for putting up with and raising me and Jordan. But all of this has changed since Jon got his. I really hadn't done much playing on Mom or Dad's, but since Jon got his a few weeks ago Oh Boy! I love Tap Word, and all the other cool little gadgets that you can have at your fingertip at any time of the day. How am I going to make it until I'm able to get an upgrade? That is several months away. This is turning into a very serious situation... Even as I was writing this he set up an app to check out my blog, and is playing on his. "Now Andy I tell ya it just ain't right!"

What's For Dinner?

It happens everyday, did I say everyday? Because I mean EVERYDAY. It is the eternal question that seems to never stop coming up. If you've been married any length of time you know what question I'm talking about... "What's for dinner?" I am really not all that nuts about dinner. Really for me cereal, oatmeal, ice cream, popcorn, chips and salsa... these all sound plenty good to me. I guess that's because growing up sometimes Mom would cook a big dinner, and sometimes it was just whatever floated our boat. Maybe I'm crazy, but I kinda like the whole non-traditional dinner thing. For some reason my husband doesn't see the coolness involved in having popcorn and M&Ms or a Root Beer float for supper. I really have tried to show Jon what he's missing out on, and can you believe it he thinks all of the things I've mentioned should go With something. So it looks like I had better go into the kitchen and start making beef stew.

*After I wrote this I decided to try the whole Julia Child's beef bourguignon idea which is just a fancier beef stew and you cook your beef in red wine until it evaporates. It smells divine, and I'm feeling less grumpy about cooking :) I'm thinking about baking my Mrs. Smith's blackberry cobler and eating gobs of cool whip with it for dessert. Maybe I should pull out the puffy skirt, button down shirt, my pearls, and heels.

Do What You Love

Do what you Love, and Love what you do! I have the greatest job in the world. Seriously! I teach Administrative Procedures up at the college. What is Administrative Procedures? Well it is basically how to do medical insurance billing. It was actually my least favorite part of doing my masters, so when the college asked me to teach it I was kind of hoping they'd find something that I liked a lot more. Ethics, Global Health, Risk Assessment, Qualitative & Quantitative research methods, just not billing. The cool thing about it is, they'd never offered the course so I got to design the whole thing from scratch. The greatest thing about my job is that all of my students have different backgrounds, and they are all taking the course because they are seriously considering medical billing for a profession. Seeing adults come into class who have been out of school for a while, and are frightened that they won't have what it takes really motivates me. Just like when I used to teach swimming lessons I feel so much more accomplished teaching adults than kids. Children are like sponges, and most of them aren't afraid of making mistakes or asking questions. Most adults have had a bad experience some where along the line where someone put them down, or tried to make them feel inferior. Helping them to overcome all of this, and seeing how a little encouragement can change their whole outlook is the biggest blessing to me. Tuesday night was our first meeting this semester, and I tried to study each of my students as they came in. It wasn't too hard they all looked like someone was about to ask them to go rob the E-Z mart. I could tell they were all a little surprised to see a 26 year old teaching the class, and wondering what on earth are they in for. When we finished the class, they all walked out looking like they'd been to the spa relaxed and ready to take on the world. How could a job be any better than that!